Formats using Base64, MD5, SHA1, SHA2, etc.

What is MD5?

The full form of MD5 is Message Digest Algorithm 5, which is basically a simple type of cryptographic hashing function. It is a commonly used cryptographic hash function that generates a 128-bit (16-byte) hash value which is a 32 character hexadecimal number.

MD5 has been utilized in a wide variety of cryptographic applications and is also commonly used to verify data integrity.
This algorithm is widely used in many cryptographic applications. A very popular use is to verify data integrity and. In 1991, famous US cryptographer Professor Ronald Rivest developed it to replace the old MD4 standard.

What is Base64 encoding?

Base64 is a generic term for a group of similar encoding schemes which is basically a binary data representation in ASCII string format as a result of translating into a radix64 conversion. The Base64 term originates from a specific MIME content transfer encoding.

It is commonly used to encode binary data that needs be stored and transmitted without loss or change in original contents. Other commonly used areas are in applications including email through MIME, storing passwords hash computed with some encryption, evading anti-spamming, converting images binary data into encoded strings and use within scripts, storing complex data in XML and much more. We can also consider Base64 as a way of representing binary data using only printable characters.

What is SHA-1?

SHA-1 is a short form of "Secure Hash Algorithm 1" and is one of the popular cryptographic hash functions. It is used majorly to verify the authenticity of a file and that it has not been altered. This is done by comparing the file checksum that was generated before and after transmission. The transmitted file is considered genuine when both checksums are identical.

SHA-1 was created by the United States National Security Agency and is part of the Digital Signature Algorithm or the Digital Signature Standard (DSS). SHA-1 produces a message digest which is a 160-bit (20-byte) hash value.

CAUTION: The SHA-256 hash function is one of the successors to SHA-1. It is one of the strongest hash functions available. Due to SHA-1 vulnerability, the tech giants including Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Mozilla have all announced that their respective browsers will not support SHA-1 SSL certificates by the year 2017 and would only support the SHA-2 and other higher variants.

What is SHA-256?

The SHA-256 is a short form of Secure Hash Algorithm 2 (SHA-2) and is one of popular cryptographic hash functions.
It is used majorly to verify the authenticity of a text or a data file and that it has not been altered. This is done by comparing the file checksum that was generated before and after transmission. The transmitted file is considered genuine when both checksums are identical.

The SHA-256 algorithm generates a fixed size 256 bit (32 bytes) hash value that is almost unique. This hash is a one-way function and decrypting back the hash is impossible. This kind of security features makes it suitable for use in password validation, challenge hash authentication, anti-tamper and digital signatures.

The SHA-256 hash function is one of the successors to SHA-1. It is one of the strongest hash functions available. Due to SHA-1 vulnerability, the tech giants including Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Mozilla have all announced that their respective browsers will not support SHA-1 SSL certificates by the year 2017 and would only support the SHA-2 and other higher variants.